#i don't really want them to change their religion etc. that's something they want for me and it sucks so i'd never expect that from others

[writingquestionsanswered]

Hi

I know this is a really stupid question but what does it mean when people say "If you can take that detail out and it doesn't change the story, it doesn't belong there"?

I have autism so that's probably why I'm not understanding, but to me it doesn't make sense. If I take something out, it will change the story, because,,, I'm literally taking something out. I'm changing it. The story had something, and now it doesn't.

I just don't know how to figure out what "doesn't belong".

It always seems like people use that "advice" whenever it comes to a character being disabled/POC/gay/etc. so I'm a little wary of it tbh.

When Removing a Detail Changes a Story Fundamentally vs Superficially

If you remove a detail from your story, no matter how small, it "changes" the story in that the detail is no longer there. However, there's a difference between a fundamental change (something that changes the story dramatically) versus a superficial change (something that changes the story in a trivial way.)

For example, let's say you have a scene where your character is eating ice cream with a friend, and they vehemently ask for no cherry on top. Does the cherry, and whether or not your character mentions it, have any bearing on the story later? Does your character's vehement rejection of the cherry tell us anything critical about the character?

Let's say that the cherry is important because as a result of this vehement rejection, we learn that the character is allergic to sulfides (which are used in the productions of maraschino cherries), and this sulfide allergy becomes important later in the story. Removing this moment, where they vehemently ask for no cherry on top, would fundamentally change the story because without it, the reader wouldn't learn that the character has a sulfides allergy, which becomes important later. This is a change that would deeply affect the story.

On the other hand, let's say the character doesn't have a sulfides allergy, they just don't like cherries, and this is not an important character detail and never comes up again. In this case, this vehement rejection of the cherry on top doesn't add anything to the story. Removing it only changes the story superficially, not in a way that matters.

So, to tell whether or not removing a detail would fundamentally change the story, ask yourself: "Does removing this detail prevent the story from playing out the way I planned it? Does removing this detail mean the reader won't understand a character or something that happens later?" If the answer to one or both of these questions is "yes," that makes it a fundamental change. If the answer to both questions is "no," it's a superficial change.

When it comes to the details of diversity like race, culture, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and gender identity, the issue tends to be more about making sure you're not just "painting on" this detail of diversity. Like... you can have a character who uses a wheelchair without that detail being the most important thing about the character, and without it playing a major role in the story, but you also need to make sure you create a thoughtful, authentic portrayal of a person who uses a wheelchair. In other words, you wouldn't want to gloss over or trivialize the ways in which being in a wheelchair affects the character. For example, let's say you have a group of characters who are solving a mystery and it requires them to go into an old abandoned house on a rocky hillside. The only way to access the house is up a flight of wobbly rock steps. You wouldn't want to just illustrate the character effortlessly wheeling themselves up these steps, because that would be unrealistic and inauthentic. At that point, the wheelchair just becomes a detail that's "painted on" because it doesn't really have any impact on the character or the story. But, if you show the other characters helping this character up the steps, or finding an alternate route for them to use, that makes sure this detail (that they use a wheelchair) isn't superficial.

The best way to make sure you create a thoughtful, authentic portrayal of a diverse character--when you, yourself, do not share that diversity trait--is to make sure you have a qualified sensitivity reader who does share that trait (and potentially more than one if possible) so they can let you know if there are issues with your portrayal.

Let me know if you have further questions!

•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••

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[gideonisms]

my fear of roaches is so severe now....yes I CAN grab them with a paper towel and throw them outside without breaking a sweat and yes I AM the bug catcher in most of my living situations but I'm dying inside and if a hot girl WANTED to fall in love with me and catch them for me from now on I would Not say no

[enkidusbi]

can i read your thesis i wanna know about how mesopotamians kept their loved ones close. i feel like there might be something about roots or foundations or grounding, connecting the family to the home & people to place both physically and metaphorically. gravesites are powerful powerful place connections and im really curious about what we know about a culture whose gravesites and homes were one and the same. i imagine they were pretty comfortable with death

so it's not online yet because i want to publish it first in a journal BUT i can tell you a bit about it. this is gonna be specifically about the old babylonian period (19-15th centuries BCE) because that's what my thesis is on, but with some changes it's pretty much applicable throughout mesopotamian history

so the basic thought behind burial under the houses is that the dead don't cease to part of the family. ancestor cult is an important aspect of mesopotamian culture and domestic religion. the netherworld is not a nice place, it's dark and dusty and all the spirits have for food is dust. but if you feed your ancestors (this is a ritual called the kispum which consists of food offering, libation and the calling of their names. it's a regular ritual that some sources say was done monthly, and others say it was during the yearly festival of the dead in the month of the god dumuzi/tammuz) then they'll have things to eat and drink in the afterlife! and if you are a spirit, the more descendants you have, the more your well-being is ensured! it's a symbiotic relationship. if your ancestors are satisified, they can help you out with things and act as sort of benevolent protective spirits over the household and the family, and also welcome you in the netherworld when you die. but spirits who were not properly buried or aren't given the proper offerings can wander, come back to haunt you and cause harm. if you would like to know more about this, i recommend dina katz's book, the image of the netherworld in the sumerian sources, an amazing read. the point is, the dead are part of the family, they have their metaphorical place in the family structure and a physical place in the home

people in the notes mentioned that moving probably was difficult. and it definitely was. some of the people buried in these houses were in underground tombs, built from burnt clay bricks, and some others were just in graves dug into the earthen floor, all around the houses. now these brick tombs are often found completely empty, no skeletons, nothing. which means that the family took them when they moved away. probably because they were in some way the most important ancestors, maybe the main lineage of the family? this part is not really clear because these bones are missing, they took them, we don't know anything about them. however, in ur, there are two examples of just the skull being buried and i think that means that family moved to this house from somewhere else and brought the skulls of their ancestors along and re-buried them. it's a very rare find though

from an anthropological perspective, the phyisical proximity of the graves in the same place where the living slept, ate, worked, raised children, etc, was a kind of constant reminder. of their shared ancestors, of their shared identitiy as a family and as a larger clan or kinship group. from a psychological point of view, it was a strategy of coping with grief

important to note also, that this was not practiced by every family. there are houses with no graves at all or just one or two graves, certainly not the whole household. this means that most likely there existed also cemeteries, burial grounds outside the cities. to my knowledge, no cemetary like this has been found yet. but it would be insanely interesting to see what they were like and how the people buried there were different from the people buried in the houses at the same time!

in the end, let me give you a quote from the myth of erra and išum (translated by karel van der toorn in the book mesopotamian magic). this is what a man says about his house:

"These are my living quarters, I have personally made them and will have my peace within them, and when fate has carried me off, I will sleep therein."

i said i can't write a poem about this. and i don't have to, because they already did and it's beautiful

[harmoonix]

🍂🍁Autumn Start Astro - Observations🍂

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡

🦋~ Nature's Ambience ~🦋

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘

🍂 - People with Moon in the 6th house or Cancer in the 6th house can be affected by the seasons changing, for example feeling more excited in summer while getting more nostalgic in the autumn

🍁 - I can see already natives with Taurus Venus/Venus in the 4th house and Taurus in the 4th house already decorating their home based on the season that comes next, which is amazing because I love their will for wanting to do these things

🍂 - Autumn/Fall is the season where Gemini/Aries and Taurus Ascendants/Risings have good luck in love because their 7th house sign is an Autumn/Fall ruled sign (Sagittarius, Scorpio and Libra rule over autumn)

🍁 - I can aswell already see Libra and Leo placements going to shopping for autumn clothes or just more cozy clothes to wear in this season

🍂 - Aquarius Placements are the types of people who start to make photos of the season already, because they tend to be very photogenic they want to make photos

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍁 - Mercury aspecting Jupiter gives the native a really good vocabulary, like these people really know when to talk and how to talk to get people's attention

🍂 - Does it happen for the natives who have Pluto - Moon aspects to often get into paranormal activities? Like random seeing entities and hearing like steps at night etc..

🍁 - Uranus aspecting Neptune can give dream of things that already happen or gonna happen, because these aspects can have dreams that happen at an exact date

🍂 All 8th house placements is y'allsss season to get into witchy thingssss, I imagine them with an big cauldron making potions and spells

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡

🍁 - Neptune in the 9th house in your Solar Return Chart can mean that you are not sure about your belfies/religion in that year and you can be confused around these topics

🍂 - Mars in your 11th house in your Solar Return chart can mean that you will need a lot of freedom, like you want people to let you a bit alone this year to think about your thoughts

🍁 - Sun aspecting Saturn or Mars are so great if they go to gym because they can gain muscle fast and good looking, Sun - Mars aspects can gain muscles faster tho

🍂 - Tho boys/men with Mars in the 1st house can gain muscles/6 packs earlier in life, I mean they really have a good body and muscles can just show up

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡

🍁 - Jupiter aspecting Sun can either feel like they are the luckiest people. Either like they don't have luck at all because it happens sometimes to have luck with something, and sometimes it happens to don't

🍂 - I'm not 100% sure of this but Neptune - Pluto aspects can show a love for horror things but also a fear related to horror things aswell. Is like you want to watch horror movies but you also might fear watching them

🍁 - Mars/Pluto in the 12th house might give weird dreams tho, like dreaming or weird things happening around you or with you or just dreams can be a little more prominent in your life

🍂 - Asteroid Hekate (100) one of my fav asteroids in the entire sky has the power to show psychic abilities, in contact with Ascendant or Moon can be really prominent while in contact with Pluto can be really powerful and intuitive (May Hecate bless you by the way 🥰)

🍁 - Hekate in contact with Mercury tho they can just hear a lot of talking and whispering, or just random hearing things, but girl their hearing is super evolved they can hear everything

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂 - Neptune in the 12th house can be the type of people who have intense dreams and still be able to forget everything til morning comes, because their mind can also be foggy

🍁 - There are different types of witches but I think Pisces Placements will sure be cosmic witches while Capricorn Placements be Divination witches and Cancer Placements be green witches

🍂 - Ascendant aspecting Neptune or Pluto really have beautiful eyes, 👀 something about their eyes is just wow.. magical

🍁 - Sun/Moon/Uranus in the 12th house are the types of mystic people, they love everything about magic, mystic things etc, spells, also very magnetic to those things

🍂 - Moon square/opposite/conjunct Sun can go in multiple moods during the day, and their mood can change very fast, they also tend to do this in order to protect themselves

🍁 - Aquarius Sun/Rising/Venus = Otherworldly beauty, often in the beauty industry called as Alien Beauty. Their faces. Their gestures, their bodies are different and considered unique

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂 - Asteroid Circe (34) square Ascendant are the type of natives who look really intimidating and interesting at the same time, they can really show off their dark side first. People often can think these people don't like them

🍁 - Asteroid Circe (34) in water signs might heal listening to healing music and with water, this might sound like a joke but taking a purifying bath can heal your soul

🍂 - Asteroid Circe (34) square/opposite/conjunct Juno, the couple might heavily intense with eachother and often having an high libido, but they also may posses physic abilities together

🍁 - Asteroid Circe (34) sextile/trine Sun can embody the witch traits really good, AND OMG their eyes are full of magic LIKE literally their eyes are seductive and in the same time dark

🍂 - Ceres (1) aspecting Circe (34) = BOTH MOTHERS periodttt we stand them both. Shows the native can heal using witchcraft and shadow work

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍁 - 18+ content Circe or Ceres in Scorpio can be prone to use sex as a healing key, because sex can really heal those natives and making them feel better (Y'all just be careful who you're doing it with)

🍂 - Circe in the 10th/11th houses are very influential, like they are born to be like this and to have this power to change. They attract a lot of people into them without them knowing

🍁 - Circe in the 12th house is the ultimate empathic native, they feel, they see, they have a really powerful mind and are extremely creative

🍂 - CIRCE In the 4th or 8th house in CIRCE persona chart can show power of occult gained from ancestors, basically your ancestors were into occult and witchcraft aswell and passed this down to you (lovely)

🍁 - Can someone tell me why Lilith (h12) aspecting Moon give so much ALEJANDRO from Lady Gaga vibes so much? Just listen "She's not broken she's just a baby" - "She won't look at you she hides true love" - This is everything

🍂 - Circe at 11° or 23° degrees can get the information they need about witchcraft from internet or verified sites that know about such topics

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍁 - Call your friends with Leo & Sagittarius placements because they know how to party the best, they have best jokes aswell to make you mood better -

🍂 - Virgo, Capricorn and Cancer Sun/Mars can be really tricky placements. They can appear shy at first but if when you start to know them more you'll see they are the freakiest people alive

🍁 - 6th house placements people have an really pure love for animals, they are the most purest people when it comes to animals and their love for them.

🍂 - "Is gonna be lit tonight" - Describes people with heavy Sagittarius Placements in their chart, they are extremely outgoing and always do what they want and going like into the unknown is their thing

🍁- Virgo Placements can be really irritated if their room is messy while Libra can be extremely irritated if their room doesn't look pretty or aesthetic enough. Is always an chaos or peace with them

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

🦋 Fall/Autumn finally comes cuz girls and boys I waited so long for this, Summer is not my season at all but Fall and Winter are 😍🍂 esp if you live in a city surrounded by forests/nature, Autumn is extremely beautiful 🦋

🦋 The most ICONIC serial/movie to watch during this season is Twilight 100/100 🦋

🦋 GOSHI forgot that Halloween is also coming and if you know or not the history of Halloween is extremely beautiful and full of mystery 🦋

🍁 Hope everyone reading my notes has a good start of fall/autumn and good vibes together with the people you love and don't forget to make wonderful memories 🍁 + 101010101020 PHOTOS AUTUMN IS MAJESTIC

🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚☕️🍂˚ ༘ ೀ⋆｡˚

- With love, Harmoonix 🦋

[obae-me]

I saw your post about the characters with a traumatized MC and the part about the angels made me start thinking about how they'd handle an MC who has religious trauma (because I thought that was where it was going in your post)

MC avoiding Simeon and Luke because everything related to heaven creeps them out (they're legit scared of angels, god, etc) and feeling way too comfortable living in the devildom and being around demons because they "always knew they were going to end up in hell when they died" because that's what was hammered into their head growing up or something

that would sure change the cast's views on human religion huh?

Yes, absolutely. I can't remember if I mentioned it before or just kept that brainworm tucked safely inside my skull, but I think about this a lot. Namely, because I have SO much religious trauma (yippie!).

I've thought a lot about how the Celestial Realm harbors a lot of the same toxicity that certain organized religions have the tendancy to exhibit here on good ol earth. I mean, we've seen some things in game that suggest that things aren't all rainbows and roses up there. The way that Luke talks early game suggests a lot. And so I'm sure a religiously traumatized MC would have SUCH a hard time around the angels at first. (I actually had my own reservations with the angels when they were first introduced and I even kind of disliked Luke a ton before I eventually took a step back and thought about the fact that he's just a BABY who is just spitting out ideals that were shoved into his head. It's not his fault, and I think his character development is something that the fandom does not address enough. I'm so proud of him!! Having your expectations of the world be broken and then having to relearn everything you thought you knew is actually SO hard.)

MC getting along well or feeling more comfortable with demons because they don't feel like they're being judged or under the watchful eyes of others.

MC talking about "not being as afraid to come back" VERY early on in game and the other characters taking WAY too long to realize they mean come to purgatory after they pass, and the demons themselves don't feel good about knowing that.

MC avoiding certain sins/pleasures/temptations due to the fear that's been embedded in them over it. Even if those things are COMPLETELY normal and harmless to enjoy.

All of the characters being extremely patient and understanding about this sort of thing and very slowly chipping away at certain stigmas they still hold onto, making the human feel safe while they do.

MC avoiding Simeon because of mixed feelings of shame and maybe a bit of resentment and then eventually learning that he's actually such a down to earth and sweet guy and spending more time with him just to learn that he's been in many similar situations is so...so good to think about. Learning that he'll never force certain ideologies onto them, that he doesn't see them as someone who needs to be "saved". A human and an angel sitting together and discussing what being "good" really means. Sharing confessions to each other that they've both held on their backs for such a long time because they've been too ashamed of themselves and confused to heal from it alone. They're not a sinner and a Saint, they're just normal people who make mistakes and want to do good in the world.

I do have many thoughts on this clearly...

[skaldish]

Can I ask you your opinion about Asatru Alliance? I live in Italy and I'm starting to see some pagan organizations using Asatru Alliance as a trusted reference for Heathenry. I have my doubts, but it could be that something gets lost in translation.

And by the way, apparently Asatru Alliance reconstructed a day to celebrate Loki and Sigyn, the 31 of july? 🤔

The general answer I have here is to follow this rule of thumb:

Any American org that has the word "Asatru" in it is probably plagued by some bullshit, even if it's not the racist kind.

These orgs operate out of structures they inherited from their Folkish origins. Even if they are not Folkish now, most were established during a time when Folkish Heathenry was the only kind of Heathenry that existed in America.

One notable structure they inhereted was "whoever is in charge controls the narrative of Heathenry for everyone else." So if you want that narrative to change, you need to elect different leaders.

Even the Asatru Alliance admits it determines who it accepts based on whether the applicant is a "good fit" or not, basically admitting there's a norm of narrative-control in their ranks.

Having an authority control the narrative—even when it's a narrative you like—is antithetical to how Heathenry operates, where practices and customs emerge organically from people and culture, not from doctrines or religious authorities determining what's what. (We have a recent example of something new emerging in Heathenry, actually, in the form of Spongecake Day as a holiday for Loki.)

The Asatru Alliance is also basically the posterchild of what I call "Viking Christianity." They take the Norse gods and slot them into a Christian structure, treat the Eddas like holy books, treat the Hávamál like scripture, etc.

I don't know much about the holiday they reconstructed, but I do know many reconstructionists have a bad habit of treating the past as a doctrine to follow. Reconstructing the past can tell us a lot about how Heathenry was practiced in a given time and place, but using it as doctrine is, hilariously enough, very ahistorical—the Norse people didn't base their religion around what they discovered about their Bronze-Age forebearers, so why would we do the same?

Even if the Asatru Alliance didn't have the narrative-control aspect baked into their system, the org doesn't really strike me as one that understands Heathenry's religious architecture. After all, knowledge of Norse Studies is not the same as knowledge of theology.

So no, I wouldn't really trust them as a resource on Heathenry.

[yeyinde]

So i had this thought, what if Ghost was a doll maker? He makes those creepy human sized dolls, his shop is in an isolated part of the city (a lot of people purposely avoid his shop because of the bad vibes) and he spends most of his time in his basement carving. He also makes curses and haunted things and then he creates you, a beautiful doll. You are one of his many creations but a bit different. You yearn for him, crave his touch. He is your creator, basically your god and you need his love. He couldn't care less though always complains about creating a needy doll while secretly enjoying how she worships him

Honestly i don't even know if this makes sense lmao just wanted to leave it here

i adore this. i love this particular subgenre (esp when it's horror/dark romance) of building/making something that becomes obsessed with you. ai, androids, dolls, frankensteinian monsters. i'll take them alllll. creator x creation, my beloved. what you originally start as something meant to be symbiotic that devolves and changes into something parasitic?? ruinous? goddddd. that's my raison d'etre.

and this is such a unique spin!!!!! usually it's Frankenstein's monster x hapless human so the idea of you being the thing made by Ghost to satiate some aspect he's yearning for instead the other way around is so intriguing to me.

like maybe he starts out making something to occupy himself. doesn't really have any clear direction. and if we want to add in some layers, maybe "you" were someone he saw in passing. a person he was once obsessed with/couldn't save, etc. but maybe "you" died. and this is a replica, an effigy. except. we have endless warnings in mythology and religion about making something in the likeness of another. cue some well placed lightening, and then bang. you wake up. and he isn't sure how to handle you not really being "you."

(also: this is giving me an incredible idea for a Ghoap story 👀 might fuck around and write something GROTESQUE about Simon making "Johnny" because he can't move on and what comes to life is. well. i'm also def adding this to the Simon x Reader wip list w full creds (on both accounts, Ghoap and x Reader), because, op, this is such a godtier idea and ahhhhhhhhhh)

[cripplecharacters]

I'm not sure if I should treat this as an illness or a disability. I'm working on a character who has chronic hives, set in classic Tolkien fantasy. Given the setting, when he first starts flaring up he's marked as cursed by constant burns and is ostracized by society. Once his pain is manageable via temporary magic remedies he becomes a paladin determined to find his patron god and prove himself. She lovingly tells him he's not cursed, and together they work to de-stigmatize his appearance.

Hi lovely asker!

100% agree that chronic allergies and the many other things that come along with it count as a disability. They have knocked me down for day in the past, and doing simple everyday tasks like taking a shower or washing the dishes are things I put off for as long as I can as they're painful and end up knocking me down for the whole day.

One thing about chronic hives and reactions is you start to learn your triggers so you learn what to avoid. For most people, they have set triggers that your body recognizes as such and will alarm too. If you take something like Mastocytosis or MCAS, these disorders are characterized by the instability or abundance of the Mast Cell. And pretty much what this means is you could eat apples for your whole life and then one day your body goes "Hey, guess what I can do" and boom, your having a reaction because you are that apple. The part of this is, sometimes it'll be a one time thing and you can resume eating apples the next day, other times it'll be a forever or long time thing and now you can no longer eat apples. Deciding if you want unknown or idiopathic causes for your character's reactions but you could also specify exactly what (if he knows) he is allergic too.

I know some people (me) sometimes scar up when it comes to certain allergic reactions. That might be something to throw in as a lot of reactions even chronic ones tend to not show physically once you treat them. They can scar for a number of reasons as just from constant itching, friction, scabbing, blistering or a lot of reactions can get so bad that the surface layers of skin coming off isn't unheard of (I have a few scars from this personally). Sometimes the skin may harden around the area or gets tough, or sometimes there is discoloration too.

Also another thing I would show is even though he has remedies that treat him temporarily, a lot of times no matter how good your treatment regimen is every so often you'll have that break through reaction. These (in my experience) are usually the worst because if you don't have an emergency medication you can take them you just have to ride it out and hope the meds in your system do their job. This might be something that could happen even once he becomes a paladin and goes to find his patron god.

Another thing to research would be the effect of culture and religion when it comes to disabilities and the treatment of those people. In the Tolkien setting this would still apply as they have culture and religion etc. It already sounds like you have that part worked out but too much research never hurt anybody.

I really like how they both work together to get rid of the stigmatism at the end though. Especially for the character and the other characters in the story, it's always so lovely to see a change for the better like that! Happy writing!

~ Mod Virus 🌸

[drbased]

i am highly spiritual, and yet we have almost identical beliefs about humanity, religion and its organization, etc. save for the conclusions it brings us to. just found this really interesting, honeslty.

In the nicest possible way: no, I don't think we have almost identical beliefs. Or rather, I think we have one primary difference in perception that changes the entire nature of our beliefs.

One of the accidental problems with language is that it can make connections and associations between concepts that aren't really real. For example, we have tras claiming that aspects of your personality, mannerisms, hairstyle etc. are all an expression of an internal sense of gender, which is retroactively justified as real through the existence of those characteristics. It's a tautology, but it's a potent one, because those characteristics can add up to something deeply personal and individual, which isn't communicated easily. One person's 'qu**r identity' can be entirely different from another person's 'qu**r identity', but due to the simple existence of the term they can find a percieved similarity of experience that wouldn't exist without it.

This relates to spirituality because I think what's happening here is that the word 'spiritual' is being used like the word 'gender'; that is, an extra layer of meaning is added to the human experience that is retroactively justified by the existence of those human experiences. In this case, the nature of spirituality seemingly being discussed is a sense of profundity and awe.

The primary dispute is one of perspective: as an atheist, I say that actually, the concept of 'profound' is an entirely human construction. Things aren't built with a natural sense of 'awe-inspiringness' that we as humans simply tap into - but rather, the emotion is generated inside us in response to the neutral things that are already there. It's a seemingly minor shift in approach, and many would feel is a nitpick, but I think it's accidentally become the crux of this whole argument.

This is why many spiritual people think that atheists 'hate humanity' and 'are cold and unfeeling' - they percieve the world to be inherently spiritual; that is, consisting of an inexorable quality that humans should be able to experience, so anyone not claiming to recognise this quality is simply denying their own humanity, their own senses, as well as denying the profundity of being: the two are inexorably interlinked. I can see where this argument comes from - we, as humans, tend to naturally feel 'cleaner' after a wash, we tend to fell happier after having laughed etc. etc. and if we don't feel these things, either there's something supposedly 'wrong' with us, or we're denying those feelings so we get to feel superior in some way. And don't get me wrong, the classic 'reddit atheist' is like this - the kind of guy who says that your pet cat don't feel love when they nuzzle you in the morning. There are definitely people (men especially) who want to feel above any and all sensory-based human emotional response.

But.

My primary argument is that things external to us (and some internal) do not have any inherent emotional quality; any emotions I generate in response to them are my own personal, fallible and fragile appreciation for them, generated within my brain in response to stimuli. This may sound less magical, and that's the point: laughter generates happiness because it's an evolutionarily important pro-social tool. Washing makes you feel 'cleaner' because it's evolutionarily important to avoid disease. There's no intrinsic nature to these things that we tap into; the emotions and subsequent meaning are generated by us. If someone managed to figure out what 'love' is in humans and found out that animals don't show 'love' as we know it - well, regardless of how much of an asshole he is, that atheist above would be right. But it shouldn't be earth-shattering because 'love' does not need to be some quality inherent to nature to have meaning and value - our version of 'love' is purely human, and whatever our pets do may not be 'love' by our standards, but something speciifc to them.

This argument is ultimately immaterial unless we can demonstrate for faith-based thinking can result in harm. And unfortunately, this is how people end up getting manipulated by churches and cults. The sense of awe you feel in a crowd of thousands of people listening to music and services doesn't exist in the ether - it's deliberately manufactured explicitly to generate that feeling inside you. So this isn't just an argument about correctness; this is an argument about harm.

Why do you think churches are built that way; it's easy to think of them as just inherently magnificent, but that is just the limitation of the way our language constructs adjectives - 'magnificent' is given the same linguistic weight as, say, 'squishy' or 'spiky'. But 'magnificent' is a value qualifier, not a neutral adjective; it's something that requires an internal sense of judgement - but due to the power of emotions it can feel real, perhaps more real than pricking your finger on a spiky thing. Religion has a tendency to place reality into a secondary level of importance; god/the universe is what's more 'real' than us. This is a hierachy; it places our subjective experiences and values as merely a conduit for something more real and meaningful than we could ever be, than we could ever imagine (and, if you think my argument is cold and male and misogynistic, then I like to remind you which of the sexes loves hierarchy). And this is hierarchy that is absolutely ripe for exploitation.

No, I do not think that spiritual/religious belief is a guarantee of exploitation, nor is it the only source of exploitation - but a tendency to see your emotions as merely a conduit for some universal truth means you will be much more easily persuaded to into believing things based on your emotional perception, and the kinds of people who want to persuade you are typical doing so to gain something; not always something sinister, but it certainly can be.

Too many spiritual people want to have their cake and eat it too: they want to skirt over arguments of correctness and harm and jump straight to accusing us of denying our senses - when what they actually mean is that by denying our senses we're denying reality. But when we claim that actually we're perfectly capable of listening to our senses, we just call these things 'awe' and 'profundity', they turn around and say 'that's just what spirituality is! you're just like us, just in denial!' When we say that our emotional experiences are not spiritual we mean it; this isn't 'agreeing on most things' - this is an entire shift in perception. My senses are mine, and the meaning I generate from them is mine. Those sense are a fallible product of evolution, and the meaning I generate from them is also a fallible product of evolution. But that also means that the profundity has a new origin, and this is ultimately less safe and comfortable than from some external source I can rely on; the profundity comes from the terrifying realisation that these things just are, with no invisible connective tissue outside the bare reality of cause-and-effect. That isn't inherently profound, but I make it so through my own human ability to generate meaning. And as that meaning is mine, therefore the responsibility for it is mine.

[aita-blorbos]

Am I the asshole for not paying and dying?

So, I (M???) Technically died thousands of years ago. The thing is at that time my country and religion had the rule that the dead were buried with a coin to pay the dude that was taking them to the underworld.

But I was (and still am) really poor. So the God (M???) who collected the souls (We're gonna call him H) and guides them to the underworld left me at the side of the river where I had to take a boat

Then a boatman, let's call him C took me to the other side, when he asked me to pay I didn't have any money to pay him and actually enter the underworld

I suggested that H should pay for me since he was the one that brought me there but he said something like "As if I'll make any money from this business if I start paying for the dead too"

Well since I couldn't pay, I never really died and have been wondering around earth for a while now.

But recently my country officially changed religions and since the old gods gave everything to the new ones H and C had to do some paperwork in order to actually get retired

But they can't get retired since I am an unfinished business from the ex administration. Any time H tries to kill me (that guy has a lot of anger issues and hates my guts so it happens a lot) I'm sent up to heaven and an angel G(M?) has to bring me back down since I "am not a Christian and unfinished business" etc etc

H and C have been trying to find me a job so that I'll get paid, pay them and die so they can retire

So far I haven't been able to get paid, I guess I'm kind of sabotaging the whole thing since I don't want to die but also the country and the economy is shit, where would I find 1€ in this time and age?

So am I the asshole for not helping them retire by paying them and dying?

[to-thelakes]

I feel like Luke could also call them baby girl (ik its Morgan's thing but imagine Luke saying it) or pretty girl

Also think about Luke worshipping reader. Like full on having notes in his phone or on paper with favorite foods, flowers, music. Everything! And also just nsfw worshipping obviously

i love the idea of him calling his partner 'pretty girl' that would actually have me weak at the knees. and i do actually kind of see 'baby girl' as being something he would say but derek saying it is so ingrained in my head that it is hard to really see it any other way, if that makes sense? but i absolutely see it

and now... the worshipping, oh. my. god. he would worship his partner, it would be beautiful. here's just some thots;

SFW

starting with the safe for work things, he is very very sweet, like he has a couple of notes in his phone full of lists, lists of your favourite foods, stuff that you have mentioned that you want and present ideas, date ideas, so many things

also, we know that luke usually cannot cook for shit but he would absolutely learn for his partner, he wants to be able to cook their favourite things and give them the perfect date nights

like, he is downbad for his partner and it's honestly a little embarassing

but he would also constantly give them little kisses on the cheek/forehead etc. and he would get blankets to wrap them up if they were cold

i also would say that this is NOT one-sided like worshipping because his partner would absolutely be the same

like they would be a tooth-rottingly cute couple, constantly talking about each other, bigging up their achievements, lists and notes about things to do, constant text messages

aND luke would always get a postcard for his partner from the places he went for work, sometimes they'd be blank, sometimes he'd write to them if it was a hard case and then they'd be given to his partner whenever he got back

like they are on his mind 24/7 and they would get constantly praised, CONSTANTLY

NSFW

now, the nsfw worshipping... well

he is a giver

luke alvez is a giver and i will take no criticism on this

he would literally settle between your legs and stay there for fucking hours if you would let him

like he would want you to cum before him and as many times as you'd let him, like he absolutely is a giver and the whole time he is between your legs, he is fucking praising you constantly

he wants you to know how pretty you are, how beautiful you are, how much he loves you letting him do this, literally the most filthy shit would come out of his mouth and he would just have you folding in seconds for him

he is also just very skilled with his mouth, he would kiss you everywhere and he can do magical things with his tongue, whether he's kissing you, he's between your legs or he's kissing your body, he's so fucking good at it

and he does in fact kiss everywhere, not a single part of your skin is left untouched by his lips (within your boundaries obviously) and the whole time he is telling you how perfect and beautiful you are

okay and also, if you have stretch marks/scars/marks that you don't like, he will give them special love

like if you have stretch marks on your belly, he will press kisses across them and tell you how you are breah-taking and the marks on your skin don't change that, whether you have them or not, he would absolutely adore you either way

luke just wants you to know how perfect you are and he would make sure before he got his own release, you were feeling so loved and worshipped

i feel like false god by miss swift is very luke-coded in this situation like "Religion's in your lips / Even if it's a false god / We'd still worship / We might just get away with it / The altar is my hips / Even if it's a false god / We'd still worship this love"

like luke would just absolutely worship at your feet and he is a fucking simp for doing it but he loves it

and even when he inside you, he's still constantly praising you, telling you how perfect you fit around him, how perfect you are and how much he loves you

and if you ride him? oh. this man. he is seeing heaven, he is gone, like he would praise you even more,

this has just turned into me rambling about luke & a praise kink but... he would play into it if you had one and he would fucking worship every part of you while praising you endlessly

this man loves his partner, nobody can change my mind

im a whore for luke alvez, that's all.

[tossawary]

I've only seen 3 episodes of the new "Percy Jackson" show so far and my main complaint with the first two episodes was pacing. I thought the pacing in the third episode was much improved and overall very good, but a lot about the first two episodes felt rushed to me.

I think episodes 1 and 2 both could have been two episodes each to slowly introduce us to Percy, Grover, Sally, Mr. Brunner, Mrs. Dodds and the Minotaur, and then to the Camp, to Annabeth, Luke, Clarisse, the satyrs and the different cabins, etc.. I mean, I think what was there was pretty solid! I like the actors! I don't think it's badly written (I think making Luke show Percy around the camp was a good choice to make later things hit harder, since we will have more time with Annabeth on the quest itself later), but I would have liked more breathing room scenes, like when Percy burned the blue jellybeans, for things to settle in, and I blame the studio for not giving this show a longer season to work with.

As it stands now, the first two episodes felt more intended for existing fans, rather than for onboarding new fans. I feel like a frog being thrown into boiling water instead of the water coming up to a boil around me. If you're not familiar with this religion & lore already, if you don't know who the Twelve Olympians are, the introduction to the Camp doesn't give you much of a foothold, which is quite unfortunate when PJO was many people's introduction to this stuff.

The blue food is not really explained. The tension of the mystery with Mrs. Dodds kind of gets thrown out because it all happens so fast. There's no time to slowly build a feeling of normalcy and then wrongness. Percy's relationship with Chiron is undermined by how little time they get together. Percy finding out who his father is happens SO QUICKLY that we don't have a proper understanding of what's wrong about his claiming when it happens. The camp looks cool and I want to see more of it! How it functions is barely explained! We barely get to meet anyone! It feels like Percy is there for less than 48 hours before he's leaving on a quest again, so there's very little time to build up his attachment to it. I have less emotional investment in Percy's conflict with Clarisse because we barely get to understand what daily life at Camp Half-blood might be like (although I understand putting less focus on Clarisse now knowing that you'll be able to play catch-up during future storylines).

I think the show is making pretty good choices with the time that they have, I just wish they had MORE time. I don't think that they have to include every little detail and scene and character from the books. I like a lot of the changes they've made just fine. I just feel like the writing and acting is being undermined by the fact that there's very little time to set things up so that you can knock them down, and that it takes more time to show something visually than it does to read a sentence. Everything in episodes 1 and 2 is moving so quickly that some of the magical aspects feel... less magical to me because there's less time to develop contrast. And the show doesn't have as much time to potentially develop cool NEW things, to slide in more new funny character interactions, because it's all so smushed down. I want more time to see these actors shine together.

(Although, admittedly, it is VERY funny to feel like Percy is stuck in some sort of speedrun version of the story. Every day is a new rollercoaster of Percy not knowing what the fuck is going on and going with it because he's not given the time to ask questions. Sure! This might as well happen next! His life sucks already. That part feels very true to the books, although I think the feeling could still be preserved if the show was given more time.)

I'm tired of 8 episode seasons. I don't know if I think that PJO needs a full 20+ episodes to tell the story of the first book, probably not, but being constrained to only 8 instead of at least 10-16 feels disappointing.

[xjulixred45x]

Satoru Gojo/Suguru Geto x Carrie White like-Reader

Genre: long Headcanons/Drabbles

Reader: female

Warnings: LONG POST, Reader has a Personalilty and background like Carrie White (of Stephen King) so, is very shy, quiet, kind but has traumas with BULLYING, ABUSIVE HOUSEHOLD, ABUSIVE MOTHER, Religion themes, ,etc. Reader has telekinesis/mental Powers, Angst/comfort, Fluff. The mother of reader may or may not die horribly

Hope You enjoy! Specially @thecuriousquest and @trancylovecraft

Satoru Gojo

Regardless of whether he met you at Jujutsu Tech or when he graduated, he definitely noticed that something about you was unusual, not in a bad way, but that something was wrong... You were very withdrawn and shy, but being only a group of 4 students (if you met him at school), you would have to open up, but it was something very complicated to do. Gojo being Gojo tried to get you out of your shell by telling you funny things, welcoming you to the group along with Geto and Shoko, erc. When he noticed that you didn't even eat at school, he even offered you some of his own, which you denied until there was simply no point in going against him and you ate more. Satoru found you endearing in a way. But he definitely noticed more worrying things. for example, when you had your first period at school. god, the way you were SO SCARED and disturbed definitely left an impression on him, you didn't even know what period was! What kind of parents don't explain this to their daughter!? and it wasn't even the worst. You were scared that your mother (? You were crying so hard that he barely heard you) was going to punish you.... WHAT!?!

NOW, Satoru knew that you came from a non-sorcerer background, and yes, he can understand the fear of punishment for using your powers (which are fucking cool) without responsibility -- but a punishment for having your period? And on top of that you saw all this as a divine punishment for disobeying your mother... Gojo was definitely much more attentive to your family environment after that. something smelled VERY bad with your family. Sure, understand that most Non-Sorcerers don't believe in curses and maybe that would be your case, but this...wasn't looking good. Apart from the fact that he tried to cheer you up after that incident, whether it was helping you train, making comments that he knew would make you happy (he loves to see you smile, he wants you to do it more often), inviting you to the outings he had with Geto and Shoko , etc. Although he definitely got a little scared when you used your Ritual Technique, the way you went into a catatonic state and became an unstoppable force of destruction was a HUGE change from your normal self.

He was always able to calm you down when your technique was too much to handle. And besides, he was very useful, he made sure you knew that. and above all, that was REALLY a blessing. I think that when things get more serious he will directly ask you to go live in the academy dormitories or, of course, his house. He doesn't trust your mother in the slightest, and the feeling is mutual. He only met her ONCE and he absolutely despised her, but he tried to be "respectful" because despite everything, you love your mother. Although she did not return the favor. She was crazy, always talking to you like you were a plague. Let's say he was this 🤏close to doing something he would later regret (or not). It left him upset, tired, slightly homicidal and with an immediate desire to hug you for having to deal with this woman your entire life.

someone makes fun of you? Gojo will destroy them in seconds, either with a beating or simply leaving their pride in the ground. If we talk about more advanced terms of relationship (and in the current time), Gojo can't stand seeing you see yourself as someone "contaminated" (in any case for him, you are only contaminated with bad thoughts about yourself that he will gladly destroy)

Gojo loves to pamper you, regardless of whether it's with pampering or material gifts, although he likes the shy expressions you make when you receive either of the two much more, it just makes him want to give you a big hug because you're so adorable!

He likes the clothes you make for yourself, but he is definitely going to buy you QUALITY clothes that YOU WANT to wear, no matter how unconservative they are. Lots of nicknames, seriously, it seems like he always has a new one or a cheesy variation, especially if he sees that you're tired or had a bad day. He can always bring out his most joking side, yes, but knowing your context, he is more interested in letting you know that he loves you. I can see him taking you to the psychologist sincerely, he tells the higher ups that it is because of the connection of your mental state with your ritual technique, but he really doesn't want to have to see you as you were in your youth, mainly. (that and he'll probably send your mother to a mental institution or, with luck, jail. You don't have to worry about that, Gojo already took care of it) He is quite patient with your nervous breakdowns as a result of your upbringing and your skills, there are times when you accidentally break something and due to anguish your powers end up getting out of control, breaking more things. and you end up reduced to a mess of apologies and tears. It breaks his heart to see what THAT WITCH your mother put you through. He makes sure you didn't hurt yourself trying to fix it and assures you that he's fine, he has a lot of money, he didn't like those dishes to begin with, he can always buy another one, things like that so you understand that he doesn't care about that. In any case, he only cares about you, and your well-being.

He makes sure to take you to Dr. Shoko every time you have a mission where you used your powers, he's afraid you might have a brain hemorrhage if you push yourself too hard. He may even buy you candy to do the same thing he did at the beginning, stimulate his brain. If it accidentally makes you a sweet tooth, it will probably just make him buy more from you (again, you're too cute when you look all comfortable and happy). VERY PROTECTIVE, he knows very well what your triggers are, so he evades them as if it were the black plague. And God forbid the higher ups want to use you as a weapon, Gojo will give them the scare of their lives. only to then have a cuddle session with you when he get home. In general, very protective and loving towards you, he will not allow you to be hurt or harmed, and he will compensate for all the time without love that you have had to endure by giving you very high doses of care, patience and of course, love.

Suguru Geto

He probably meet you in Jujustu Tech.

Similarly to Gojo, he could tell that you probably didn't come from a good background, but he was more subtle about it and tried to approach you in small but sure steps. That's how he found out that you came from a family of Non-Sorcerers. okay, it makes sense now that you have so little knowledge of the world of Jujustu, he understands it well coming from a family like that himself. Although of course, he could notice very quickly that unlike him, you did not have a good relationship with your family, or rather, you were very afraid of them. It was quite noticeable in his eyes due to your nervous and quiet nature. If an incident like your period occurs, he is definitely the one who try to calm you down and console you the most, assuring you that no, it is not a divine punishment, it is something normal, and that no, he is not angry with you, everything is fine. He want to give your family the benefit of the doubt at first and think that since you come from an EXTREMELY religious home and you just had your period in your junior year (17-18 years old) your family probably didn't see the need to tell you. It's a strange excuse, especially when he sees the pure fear you had when they mentioned the possibility of calling your mother. He prefers you to say it yourself, but Geto definitely thinks (knows) that you come from a bad background. so he try to make you stay on Jujustu tech as much as possible. He tries to help you adapt to both Jujustu's world and his companions, whether it's bridging conversations, helping you with homework, just as Gojo can ask you out as a group, etc.

Did you see that Carrie in some adaptations floats with her powers? imagine doing that with Geto! either make your classmates float with your powers or float yourself, flying near the school with Suguru nearby with one of his curses in case you fall. He is much more comfortable with that carefree and calm expression on your face instead of the constant nerves. and he is quite shocked when he sees you using your powers in fights, the brutality, the anger behind all that power, surprised him, but more like a fascination than anything else. You are blessed with your powers, he can see it, but unfortunately Non-Sorcerers don't see it that way. ESPECIALLY your mother.

At first, Suguru is subtle with his dislike for your mother, again, try to give her the benefit of the doubt, but if he gets to know her sincerely it will only make him go from dislike to TOTAL DISGUST for the woman. If he sees how she treats you, GOD HELP HER, he's going to scare her to death with his curses and tell her directly NOT to lay a hand on you. and then they'll probably go eat something with you (he might even go visit his parents, out of nowhere he feels kind of grateful that AT LEAST they're not like your mom)

You are linked more by your similar (but very different) origins. a lot of compliments, and he always ALWAYS manages to make you smile (he tried to make a double meaning joke ONCE and it took you an hour to understand it on your own, you turned out like an adorable tomato! so now he says from time to time one to see Your reacction). Also be very careful that you do not use your powers excessively, no matter how fascinating they are, know that there can be SERIOUS consequences if you do not limit their use. If we talk about the most current times (when Geto becomes corrupted) chances are that you have also finally reached your breaking point (like the dance scene in the movie, only change you don't die!) (BRO, IMAGINE IF YOUR MOTHER WAS PART OF THE TENGEN CULT AND THEY WERE THE ONE'S WHO YOU TOOK OUT ALL THE YEARS OF ABUSE, IT WOULD BE EPIC bonus Geto just fell in love for the second time)

Speaking of more advanced terms of relationship, Geto is very determined that the ideas your mother put in your head disappear completely, but precisely by putting you in a position of power (the power you never had before). He wants to help you by giving you a sense of control and security. Mimiko and Nanako adore you, you and they have SO much in common that it's normal for them to see you in a similar light to Geto (it would be an absolute BONUS if you were on the mission where Geto saved them, again, super epic). Did you see that Carrie in the movies can even read minds? You and Geto will probably use this to your advantage to select Monkeys with a lot of money (and if you discover that they are lying, Geto will kill them right away, while he has you on his lap cuddling you :3). Similarly to Gojo, you are very spoiled, although with some differences.

Compliments are still Suguru's main love language, but he's also a very physical person, wanting to keep you around almost all the time (except maybe when he kills monkeys, knowing that you still feel kind of bad about it) so there's also a lot of PDA between you, hugs, kisses, cuddles, headpats, etc. Geto really can't get enough.

Someone makes fun of You? Well, not anymore:)

He becomes especially cuddly when you're tired from using your powers and you cling to him, you're too cute. If you still have some kind of nervous breakdown because of your upbringing, Geto and the twins will most likely do a ✨cuddle pudle✨ while they calm you down.

If you somehow don't kill your mother, worry not, Geto will do it for You:) He is also willing to get rid of anyone who makes you feel uncomfortable (if that person is a Non-Sorcerer it is a plus). going👏shopping👏 especially with Mimiko and Nanako, it's like an almost "normal" family activity. Speaking of, the family respects you a lot (you can bet that some of them even have a certain crush on you, but they don't say it out of respect for Geto). Similarly to Gojo, he really likes to buy you things that he thinks you might like or would like to see you wear, traditional and fine clothing, sweet food, if you have a favorite hobby you probably have special materials, etc.

mortally protective, although he includes you in his plans, at the first sign that something is wrong he will go straight to protect you (or kill whatever endangers you). and he has a lot of experience with your situation, so he is the king of comfort. GOD FORGET THE SORCERERS TO COME FOR YOU, he may be making exceptions to his rule-- Overall, he loves you more than anything, he will make sure to take good care of you and give you all the love, appreciation and luxury that you deserve.

Shares, reblogs, and comments are very welcome!

Soon i will make a Platonic versión!! Love ya❤️

[readychilledwine]

we want the juicy details on your sexual awakening

It's not that juicy. It's actually fairly sad, but someone else may be at this point and need to hear it.

Warning - questionable consent, technically a form of sex work, total power exchange, abusive relationships, mental health issues, learning to adapt, and becoming a survivor instead of a victim.

I was a really really good kid and teen. Like I addressed, I got my kicks from fanfiction. I dated once in high school, and it never went further than kissing (which caused my first break up and broken heart). My first "What is happening to my body," came from watching The Mummy, and it wasn't something I could discuss with anyone besides my older brother who did the best he could to try to talk to me about safe sex.

I moved away from my parents in 2014 and went to a college about 4 hours away. Aka- close enough to mom and dad to drive home once every couple months, not close enough for them to randomly show up. I was an art major focusing on art history and visual design, and that required me to take a life drawing class.

Tender 18 year old Liz, a starving college student working two jobs, ended up catching the eye of one of the male models, and we started talking a lot. I found out after a month of him taking me on dates, surprising me with gifts, and him staying up with me when I'd be lonely because I didn't live on campus have friends, that he was married and him and his wife were looking for a girlfriend for him since she had a boyfriend on the side. I don't regret this choice because it shaped who I am today, but I stupidly agreed to go into it without having set my own boundaries and limits.

He had rules for me. Rules I can recite clearly to this day: he dresses me, I do not make financial choices without him, I am to tell him where I was at all times and leave my tracker on, he decides what I eat and when, no drinking, no smoking, and no other partners. If I listened, he would pay my tuition, books, help with rent, etc. At the time, I did not realize that I was entering a total power exchange dynamic, and he knew that.

Those starter rules evolved into more... sex based rules, and after 3 months, I ended up losing my virginity to him after he told me refusing was breaking his rules, and if I broke his rules, my allowance was cut off, and I really needed help with rent, friends. I am not proud of that decision, but that decision was made.

I stayed in this relationship with him hanging financial security and my own naivety over my head for close to 10 months. My dad is a law enforcement officer, and he is the one who noticed the change in my personality and looks.

I had waist length dark brown hair. I came home blonde with my hair cut to my lower neck. I stopped wearing Converse and Vans and started wearing heels and sandles more. I would get really anxious and upset if I wasn't near my phone or could not find it to meet my required check-ins. I cried. Alot. Yelling made me actually panic. My dad made me sit down with a female investigator and answer questions about everything.

When she was done and confirmed to him what was happening, he then proceeded to get my brothers, a uHaul, and my apartment keys and move me back home. He had my phone bill at that point, so he blocked the couple, her boyfriend, and their friends that I had the displeasure of meeting and ensured I never heard from them again.

Cohearsed consent is not consent. The second I started therapy and realized that, I spiraled. The weight of everything set in, and I realized I had been a victim of sexual assault. I began to cope by being hypersexual. Within a year, I'd had sex with close to 30 people trying to reclaim my body and, in turn, endangering myself until I met my ex fiancé.

When I met him, things changed significantly. He was a stepping stone in my healing and helped me find religion and value in myself beyond my body. Ironically, my healing and finding the wrong religion (catholics don't seem to be a fan of spirituality) is what led to our engagement being called off. I was 21 when we stopped seeing each other.

I slowed down at that point signicantly and cut off all sex. I was done with it and decided never again. I could please me better than anyone else could anyways. Then, I met baby daddy, and we started as strictly friends with benefits. He is the safest dom I've ever had, the kindest man I've ever met, and from the bat, he understood me more than I understood me. He saw me for me and cared for me despite the damaged goods.

He triggered the true awakening. We took sex between us slow, exploring things gently, talking about what I wanted to try and keeping track of what I liked, what he liked, and meeting in a happy middle. He indulged my want to explore with other women and just sat and watched. Then, when we felt I was ready, he introduced me to the swinging/bdsm lifestyle, and it helped me process the remaining bits of trauma I had with him beside me every step of the way. He helped shape me sexually into who I needed to be to heal and then who I deserved to be sexually for me.

I don't know at what point FwB turned into us living together and telling each other how much the other means to us almost daily, but now we're here, cuddling on couch, exhausted from taking care of our daughter, and discussing which one of us gets the last chocolate peanut butter overnight oats packet and *whispers* marriage.

Him and Sophia are the happy ending 18 year old Liz thought she was losing when she was desperate to pay rent. He helped me heal, learn who I was in terms of sex, and gave me the safest place to land.

One might say I'm pretty attached to him forever now 🤣

Ps - let me tell ya, missionary isn't boring when it's with someone who thinks you're the most beautiful woman he's ever seen, pregnancy stretch marks, and all. 💕

[thecryptidgrey]

As an avid lover of his Dark Materials I have yet to see a BG3 daemons concept and that is a Crime. So here are some Thoughts below the cut :)

(Also something something about the representation of religion in HDM and how it correlates to BG3's depictions of faith and trauma. I have the Idea but I am too tired to do much with it; may return to the thought later.)

Shadowheart- a borzoi. Elegant, spooky looking, dramatic. Borzoi don't make much vocal noise but are very playful- instincts surpressed by Sharrens that thrive with the party (see that very cute night orchid scene specifically). Generally very sweet, loyal animals, like SH when you get to know her. Plus they look amazing.

(Act 3 spoilers- I also appreciate that she'll match it when she dyes her hair. Seems suitable dramatic for her.) Anyways, I also really like borzois and think it's be funny af to see in them trotting around in game like the weird willow tree ghost things they are.

Lae'zel- Githyanki don't have daemons; she finds them baffling. Very impractical to carry one's soul on the exterior, although perhaps an efficient companion in combat to have someone you share instincts with. After much discussion by the others she decides for them if she did have one it would be a red dragon. Nobody argues with that.

(She does decide she'd have to prove herself worthy of such a beast first, and if she trusts Tav admits that maybe she'd like if Vlaakith could give her a daemon bond with her future dragon. Would she get a dragon if she became Vlaakith's chosen? Idk, she would now.)

Karlach- Tieflings also don't have daemons. She wants one wholeheartedly. The party finds her a magic ring that allows her to summon a familiar- she gets a direwolf puppy as enthusiastic and adoring as she is :)

Said ring is obtained somewhere in the Shadowlands after she gets the cooldown upgrade so she can hug it as soon as she has it. Also it grows up absolutely massive. Its paws are the size of its head when it's a puppy. All the better for cuddling with!

Gale- Tara. Wizards, sorcerers, etc, tend to have magical creatures as familiars. This AU he had Tara since the beginning. He still summoned all the other weird shit he did as a kid, just with Tara's help. She is his voice of reason and holder of the braincells; he gets to keep one and it's all about Mystra. She's protecting the rest from its corruption. He gets them back when the party convinces him to tell Mystra to go fuck herself.

(I do chew upon the trans Gale headcanon sometimes. If anyone wishes to muse with me on how daemons, which are typically of the opposite sex to their human, would be incorporated into that, please do.) Edit- pls see comments for very illuminating interpretations of daemons and gender!! Very cool stuff!

Wyll- lanner falcon. Medium sized yet formidable bird of prey, the head of which was often depicted on Egyptian gods like Ra and Horus. Beautiful, noble and nimble creatures (good for a dexterity based build, which I focused on for him alongside charisma).

Mizora's pact significantly lengthened their tether; her devil-form punishment broke it and weakened their bond significantly, much to their distress- they hate to be out of vision of one another as a result. Halsin, Jaheira and especially my Tav Cerewyn helped him adapt to and understand the new tether.

Druids and their daemons are based on the His Dark Materials witches, who have significantly lengthened bonds. Druid bonds are just as strong in markedly different ways; each is more independent and their personalities more distinct. I will definitley expand more on this; I adore Wyll and really want to do his character justice. He's the knight in shining armour but he also made a deal with a devil to be said knight, so, y'know. His daemon should really reflect that complexity.

Astarion- luna moth (changed when he turned- he can't remember what she was before.)

Beautiful in a fragile, showy way. Short-lived. Desperate for the light. A silkmoth; silk for embroidery. He resents her for being such a reflection of the self he tries so desperately to hide yet is fiercely protective of her, so beautiful and soft and hopeful- moths exist to seek light, craving it like he longed for a knight in shining armour, like he yearns for the sun.

Cazador liked to pin her wings.

(I love my sad wet cat very much and so as payback for hurting my soul he is subjected to the tragedy that is my attempting to be poetic :) )

Halsin- bear. Druid daemons reflect their favoured Wild shapes. Strong, steady, reliable, protective. Optimal shape for snuggles, very nice and warm, overall :) vibes to look at and be around. (Bear is not present for That Scene. That Scene and daemons are not up for discussion, you degenerates. Thank you <3)

Jaheira- Eurasian lynx. Struggled a bit on this one- didn't think any of the wild shapes suited her as a daemon- so looked up the national animal of Romania (supposedly Jaheira's accent?) for potential inspiration. Got the lynx, which seems perfect. Medium sized, elegant, very dignifed and deadly hunters who inhabit forests. Notably very quiet and hard to track. Endangered, which resonated with me because of Jaheira's status as one of the last of the Old Guard, so to speak. Nocturnal, which I like because we meet Jaheira in the shadow-cursed lands. Ambush predator, which just goes with my Gloom Stalker build for her. Overall seems perfect for the legendary druid.

Minsc- Boo? Fuck knows man, Minsc gonna Minsc. I spent way too long thinking about Jaheira and now I don't have the energy left. If Gale can have Tara, Minsc can have Boo. I do love Minsc so I will be back to expand on him if the mood strikes me but also I think maybe I don't need to? Daemon Boo just seems Right. Will consult Minsc's backstory and update later if necessary.

Minthara- yet to recruit her so uncertain. Displacer beast seems apt, maybe? Something felinoid would really fit her tbh. Elegant and lethal, very aloof but loyal once you've got her. Input would be appreciated.

My Tav, Cerewyn, just in case ya'll are interested- a raven named Gwyn, short for something I haven't figured out how to spell yet.

Clever, calculating, very blunt and sarcastic to balance out Cere's generally stoic, quite, calm demeanour. Sharp eyed bird for a sharpshooter ranger's daemon. Cere is a beast master ranger/ druid of land multiclass; ravens are summonable both for wild companions and familiars and are a wild shape (Cere's preferred wild shape too).

A common species but not to be underestimated and generally unpredictable, which suits her. She romances Astarion and both she and the raven think he and his luna moth are the prettiest things they've ever seen. They're also very patient and perceptive of trauma due to (Extensive Backstory), so they're more than happy to take their time with earning his trust. Astarion is very appreciative of all the shiny things the raven likes to bring him, and also that it clawed one of Cazador's eyes out for daring to speak to Astarion like That.

CONC.; symbolism is fun and also painful :)

Daemon names are a work in progress; the muses gave me this then said lol nope and fucked off before I could ask them for appropriate names. Might post them with some sketches of the party and daemons together?

(I wrote this in Notes app at an ungodly hour with fuck all editing. It is incoherent, but if anything is genuinely incomprehensible, please tell me so I may at least try to fix it. Much love <3 if you made it this far you get to know I welcome suggestions for NPCs to give daemons next!)

First edit- I misspelled quiet so many times omfg

[emmanuellececchi]

Evening rambling on...

At the moment, beside writing a few shorts for LOTR, I didn't write much. Not even for my modern romance or for my medieval romance. I had a few ideas I wrote down but since then, nothing.

I need to do some research and it is a daunting task. That and editing the story, changing some things, adding the details I find from my research. Among other things, I need to have a better idea of the geography, of the way my people are clothes, trade, laws, rulers and co.

I have the calendar and, even though I was playing very hard with the idea of the ringed world, each time I want to go for it, I remember that I need to add even more things (animals, plants, weather patterns, etc.) that will be impacted by the shadow of the ring.

But a calendar and a vague idea of how they look like or are clothes is not enough. I want something more in-depth. Why are they in conflict? What is the base? Religion? commerce? control of lands? So many things I need to set. That and also the few madmen and women that are in many history.

I know I can just focus on my main characters but I don't feel comfortable if I don't have the whole worldbuilding set in stone. I need a map, distances, duration of travels, way of travels. Limits, mountains, and ocean. Weather patterns, even on a Earth-Like world, need to be known. Where are we? Southern Europe like? Northern? If I add a mountain what will be the impact and so on.

On one side, I really want to do all that. On the other side, if I begin that, I will not write much, even less than now. I have a few shorts hanging, but not sure if I'll finish them. I have a few fanfics that are waiting desperatly for my attention.

Let's just say that the fire is not really burning bright right now. At least, I love dearly the little I write. But I wish I could do more.

We'll see I guess